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Thursday, September 29, 2011

Once again, I wanted to take you to A Cup of Sparkle kitchen for more fall season cooking. If you have not seen fall leaves ice-cream sandwich tutorial yet, you should take a look at it! I got so many good reactions from you that I thought I will share another fall recipe with you.

Pinecone treats

﻿

Today's cooking recipe is very simple, fun and chocolaty.This pinecone treats are great for thanksgiving and christmas celebrations.Very eye-catching! It will be also a great cooking activity you can do with kids.

Here is the recipe for this nature inspired pine cone treats which I found from Turkish blogs:

Preparation:
1- Melt the butter in a pan. Add the honey, chocolate and cacoo. Melt them all together in low heat.
2- In a large bowl, add the melted chocolate mixture on the rice krispie and mix them.
3- Fill inside of a lemon squeezer to give the shape of a pinecone. Press it and invert it upside down on a serving plate.
4- Let it cool down.
5- Sprinkle powdered sugar before you serve it to make winter snowflakes effect.

Your pinecones are ready in a very short time without baking! I hope you will enjoy making the pinecone treats as much as I did...

AFIYET OLSUN! (BON APPETIT!)

TIPS: You can add pinenuts, crushed walnuts or sesame seeds to your pinecones to obtain extra flavor and crunchness. You can also use cupcake sleeves to serve it instead of a platter.﻿

Saturday, September 24, 2011

I have a big urge to make new things this weekend but; this weekend is the cleaning time for me unfortunately. I hope you have better plans than me :) However; I do have lots of new autumn projects from cooking to decorating that I am planning on sharing with you next week.. Stay tuned!

In the meantime, I have some inspirational quotes for you about creativity. My favorite is:

And, ways to stay creative. My number one is "Stay Away from the Computer". (I think that is said before Pinterest was born because, that site honestly relaxes all of my creative muscles,:))

What is your favorite definition for CREATIVITY? Or, do you have any tips for me that helps to stay creative?

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

﻿ ﻿ A Cup of Sparkle is celebrating the fall with a huge sale on beaded jewelry including ceramic chunky necklaces, turquoise jewelry, cluster necklaces as well as bird nest earrings and necklaces. You can find 10-15-20% discounted prices in my web store.

Enjoy the savings until the beginning of October. Click here to see the fall sale.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Happy Sunday all of you! Officially summer is over in Seattle. It has been raining all weekend. I am not sure if I am ready for the cold and rain yet. I am trying to adjust to the change in the seasons lately. I am actually kind of excited about cozy cold days...

Birds Nest Necklace by A Cup of Sparkle

I wanted to share my latest custom bird's nest necklace I made for a customer. It is made with this lovely red pearls and a cute bird. I love red and this Swarovski pearls are absolutely so fantastic. Its color is so rich!Don't you agree?

You can find this red pearls bird nest necklace by clicking here. As always, feel free to contact me for custom orders.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

You don't need to have sewing skills or experience to make a personalized bag with the colors, materials and dimensions you want. Today, I am going to share instructions on how to make a computer sleeve; which can be also applied to make a wallet, purse, or a clutch.

My project inspiration is my new baby: an 11" Macbook Air. I love it! I had to make something special for my baby. A chic outfit with some personality to accompany me for couple years. I have never made a bag before and as you know from my previous sewing project of an infinity scarf, I don't have a sewing machine. This is absolutely new for me. If you are in the same circle, don't worry! You can do it!!!

My journey started in my neighborhood Jo-Ann store. I found this creme leather like fabric (vinyl) in the clearance section. I also grabbed a hole punch, soft suede ribbon, fabric glue, and some faux fur after couple hours of walking through the isles back and forward.
Here is the simple tutorial for this stylish computer case. I will give the instructions for the MacBook Air but; you can make it to any other size you would like to do.

Step #1:Cut the fabric into a rectangle(34cm L x32cm W). Then, fold it like an envelope leaving 13cm for the flip of the bag. I put a tape where I folded it so that it doesn't move around.

Step #2: Measure 1cm from right and left sides. Draw a straight line with a pencil to guide you while punching your holes.

Step #3: Put a small mark to each 1/2cm with a ruler again. You will be punching where each dot it.

Step #4: Punch a hole to each mark- 1/2 cm apart from eachother.I used a paper punch. It didn't punch the two layers together so; I had to do it layer by layer. I bet a leather punch will be so much easier on your thumb :)

Step #5: Now, you will pull the thread - in this case a suede thread, through the holes. You can use ribbon as well as fabric. Make sure to tighten the thread each time for an uniform look but; do not tighten it too hard that the leather folds on the sides.

Step #6: Knot the end of the suede in the lower back side. For the top section, I hided the suede inside the bag and put a little glue so; it doesn't come off.

Step #7: Decide where you want to put your magnetic snap. Mark the areas with a pencil. I put the laptop inside the case while doing this. Because, the thickness of the computer does shift things a little. Make two small cuts and place the magnets on the top and the bottom. Secure it tight using something hard such as the tip your hole punch.

Step #8: Your computer case is complete. It only needs some accessorizing at this point and your options are limitless. You can design it in any way you like; add a broach, glitter,... it is time to be creative!

I am into fashion. This year; flowers and leopard fur is very trendy. There is still time for winter though.That's why I am going to plan a winter version of this case as well as a fall version and change it when the temperatures drops a bit.

I am excited to hear if you liked the fall or the winter version better???

Fall Version: Flowers...

So stylish and there are hundreds of varieties to make. My flowers is made with layering circles to add some dimension. Here is the schematic tutorial I prepared for you:

Make circles - my circles are kind of oval shaped. Punch holes inside them- some centered, some not. Punch two holes in your largest circle. Pull the suede thread through the holes as shown in the figure in the direction of the arrow. Make two knots at the ends. Cut any remaining thread. Glue the flower on the bag.

Winter Verison: Leopard!!! Isn't that just gorgeous?

Cut a leopard fox fabric same dimensions of the seal flap (32cm L) Glue it using a fabric glue.

Is your crafty flowers in bloom yet? I hope it is :-) Please let me know if you are planning to make one or if you have any questions. I would love to know your thoughts or any ideas you have.

Monday, September 12, 2011

Brown, yellow, red, orange, amber... you can find all of the beautiful fall colors in this one of a kind necklace. Lush fall colors agate gemstones are wire wrapped to each other and finished with a sterling silver chain. Length is 19 inches and can be adjusted to shorter length by moving the clasp of the chain.

Fall necklace handmade beaded jewelry by A Cup of Sparkle

Fall is absolutely the most colorful season and this piece is ideal for the coming autumn season. This beaded necklace is still available in my webstore.You can click here to see more pictures of this unique fall necklace.

PS. I am working on an awesome tutorial. Please come back to see my next blog post... I am so excited to share my new crafts project with you!!!

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Pin it! It is absolutely one of the biggest fashion trends this season. Brooches and pins are the most versatile and powerful jewelry accessories since ancient times. They can transform your look into classy, sophisticated, modern, businessy, girly or high fashion. If you have not done yet, it is time to reinvent the brooches for a traditional or a non-traditional look! You will be amazed at the difference one piece can make.

Bird nest handmade brooches inspired by nature by A Cup of Sparkle

Bird nest brooch pins were one of the first collections from A Cup of Sparkle. I wanted to give you some small tips on how to wear them. Here is the first three tips to style your brooches and more tips will come in my future posts.

1- When the temperatures drop and you want to cover your neck with a scarf, try pinning a fun brooch pin on your scarf. It will enhance your cold weather accessories highly and bring a wave of warm spirit to you and others around you!

Robin blue eggs bird nest jewelry

2- Pin it on your clothes! Cardigans, sweaters, jackets are my favorite clothing to attach a brooch. Placement is everything since the brooch will draw attention to where you put it. Experiment styling your pins on different areas and look at the mirror. Be creative!

3- Hats... summer hats or winter hats! My favorite of all... You can catch a very sweet, girly yet, sophisticated look with a simple brooch pin on the side of your hats. I have been wearing my red pearl bird nest on my summer hat this summer and had compliments every time I wore it. Simple and a non-traditional way of styling with pearls!

Monday, September 5, 2011

Thank you all of you for your warm wishes for my family's visit. It is so nice to hear from you! Labor day weekend is almost over. It was so nice to have a long break before the end of the summer. I had lots of fun with my husband and Aslan. We stayed at a small cabin by a lake, gone fishing, camped in the front yard (instead of sleeping in the house :)), bbq, and so much more.. Did you all have good weekend? I hope you all had an awesome, memorable one!

Personalized mom jewelry with acorn and bird nest charms by A Cup of Sparkle

I mentioned you earlier that I was working on a custom bracelet for a mom with two sweet daughters. I am ready to ship this cuteness tomorrow. I placed two charms to this piece; an acorn and a petite bird nest with the addition of the initials of the daughters. The acorn and the nest are the symbols of the birth months of the two girls.

We plan to even adding more charms to this bracelet in the future. I am also thinking about making a charm bracelet for myself now; with fall leaves, bird nest, acorn and maybe a singing bird.

Have a lovely week all of you! Looking forward to hear from you soon...

Thursday, September 1, 2011

Happy September everyone! It is going to be a crazy month for me this month. I am going to be an aunt for the second time and my parents will be coming from Turkiye as well as my twin sister. I cannot wait to see them all! I am very excited and very very happy...

Love Birds Necklace Jewelry Design by A Cup of Sparkle

Talking about family; I want to introduce you to the birds family of mama bird, dad and their love nest. This couple are the cutest lovers ever. You may completely personalize the nest with your children's birthstones or just in the colors you like. You don't have to have kids really; this necklace is for everyone.

This customized love birds necklace with two eggs is on its way to Minnesota today. The eggs are in emerald green and sapphire blue for the months of September and May. Isn't that cute? It makes me wanna draw big hearts between the two birds on the photograph.

Also, check out this cute love birds illustration of weddinng ceremony from an European artist. It made me smile. He has one of the cutest illustrations...

About Me

Welcome to A Cup of Sparkle. My name is Melike. I am the designer and owner of A Cup of Sparkle Jewelry shop and blog. I love creating and sharing.
You can view my complete profile by clicking the "About Me" page.
Thank you for visiting!